Earth’s last major warm period was as hot as today

HISTORIC HEAT Sea levels were 6 to 9 meters higher than present-day levels the last time Earth’s climate was this warm, new research suggests. Similar sea level rise today would submerge many coastal areas (red).

John C. Kostelnick (data), GSFC/NASA (visualization)

The last time Earth’s thermostat was cranked as high as it is today, sea levels were high enough to completely drown New Orleans (had it existed at the time), new research suggests.

Climate scientists often use the last interglacial period as a reference point for predicting how rising temperatures will affect sea levels. The new results, the researchers write, will help scientists better predict how Earth’s oceans and climate will respond to modern warming. Warming 125,000 years ago raised sea levels 6 to 9 meters above present-day levels.

The global scale of that warming has been difficult to

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